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Gu SY, Shi FC, Wang S, Wang CY, Yao XX, Sun YF, Luo CX, Liu WT, Hu JB, Chen F, Pan PL, Li WH. Altered cortical thickness and structural covariance networks in chronic low back pain. Brain Res Bull 2024; 212:110968. [PMID: 38679110 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2024.110968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2024] [Revised: 04/09/2024] [Accepted: 04/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite regional brain structural changes having been reported in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP), the topological properties of structural covariance networks (SCNs), which refer to the organization of the SCNs, remain unclear. This study applied graph theoretical analysis to explore the alterations of the topological properties of SCNs, aiming to comprehend the integration and separation of SCNs in patients with CLBP. METHODS A total of 38 patients with CLBP and 38 healthy controls (HCs), balanced for age and sex, were scanned using three-dimensional T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. The cortical thickness was extracted from 68 brain regions, according to the Desikan-Killiany atlas, and used to reconstruct the SCNs. Subsequently, graph theoretical analysis was employed to evaluate the alterations of the topological properties in the SCNs of patients with CLBP. RESULTS In comparison to HCs, patients with CLBP had less cortical thickness in the left superior frontal cortex. Additionally, the cortical thickness of the left superior frontal cortex was negatively correlated with the Visual Analogue Scale scores of patients with CLBP. Furthermore, patients with CLBP, relative to HCs, exhibited lower global efficiency and small-worldness, as well as a longer characteristic path length. This indicates a decline in the brain's capacity to transmit and process information, potentially impacting the processing of pain signals in patients with CLBP and contributing to the development of CLBP. In contrast, there were no significant differences in the clustering coefficient, local efficiency, nodal efficiency, nodal betweenness centrality, or nodal degree between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS From the regional cortical thickness to the complex brain network level, our study demonstrated changes in the cortical thickness and topological properties of the SCNs in patients with CLBP, thus aiding in a better understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of CLBP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Si-Yu Gu
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Feng-Chao Shi
- Department of Orthopedics, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Shu Wang
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Cheng-Yu Wang
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Xin-Xin Yao
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Yi-Fan Sun
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Chuan-Xu Luo
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Wan-Ting Liu
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Jian-Bin Hu
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Fei Chen
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Ping-Lei Pan
- Department of Central Laboratory, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China
| | - Wen-Hui Li
- Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, PR China; The Affiliated Yancheng Maternity&Child Health Hospital of Yangzhou University Medical School, PR China.
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Ou Y, Ni X, Gao X, Yu Y, Zhang Y, Wang Y, Liu J, Yin Z, Rong J, Sun M, Chen J, Tang Z, Xiao W, Zhao L. Structural and functional changes of anterior cingulate cortex subregions in migraine without aura: relationships with pain sensation and pain emotion. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhae040. [PMID: 38342690 PMCID: PMC10859245 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 01/20/2024] [Indexed: 02/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Migraine without aura is a multidimensional neurological disorder characterized by sensory, emotional, and cognitive symptoms linked to structural and functional abnormalities in the anterior cingulate cortex. Anterior cingulate cortex subregions play differential roles in the clinical symptoms of migraine without aura; however, the specific patterns and mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, voxel-based morphometry and seed-based functional connectivity were used to investigate structural and functional alterations in the anterior cingulate cortex subdivisions in 50 patients with migraine without aura and 50 matched healthy controls. Compared with healthy controls, patients exhibited (1) decreased gray matter volume in the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex, (2) increased functional connectivity between the bilateral subgenual anterior cingulate cortex and right middle frontal gyrus, and between the posterior part of anterior cingulate cortex and right middle frontal gyrus, orbital part, and (3) decreased functional connectivity between the anterior cingulate cortex and left anterior cingulate and paracingulate gyri. Notably, left subgenual anterior cingulate cortex was correlated with the duration of each attack, whereas the right subgenual anterior cingulate cortex was associated with migraine-specific quality-of-life questionnaire (emotion) and self-rating anxiety scale scores. Our findings provide new evidence supporting the hypothesis of abnormal anterior cingulate cortex subcircuitry, revealing structural and functional abnormalities in its subregions and emphasizing the potential involvement of the left subgenual anterior cingulate cortex-related pain sensation subcircuit and right subgenual anterior cingulate cortex -related pain emotion subcircuit in migraine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yangxu Ou
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Xixiu Ni
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Xiaoyu Gao
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Yang Yu
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Yutong Zhang
- Department of Scientific Research and Education and Training Management, the Third People’s Hospital of Chengdu, Chengdu, Sichuan 610000, China
| | - Yanan Wang
- Department of Pain Treatment, Chongqing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chongqing 400021, China
| | - Jie Liu
- Department of Neurology, Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, Chengdu, Sichuan 610072, China
| | - Zihan Yin
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Jing Rong
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Mingsheng Sun
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
- Sichuan Clinical Medical Research Center for Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Jiao Chen
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
- Sichuan Clinical Medical Research Center for Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Zili Tang
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Wang Xiao
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
| | - Ling Zhao
- Acupuncture and Tuina School, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 1166, Liutai Avenue, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
- Sichuan Clinical Medical Research Center for Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Chengdu, Sichuan 611137, China
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Yao G, Luo J, Zou T, Li J, Hu S, Yang L, Li X, Tian Y, Zhang Y, Feng K, Xu Y, Liu P. Transcriptional patterns of the cortical Morphometric Inverse Divergence in first-episode, treatment-naïve early-onset schizophrenia. Neuroimage 2024; 285:120493. [PMID: 38086496 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 12/08/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Early-onset Schizophrenia (EOS) is a profoundly progressive psychiatric disorder characterized by both positive and negative symptoms, whose pathogenesis is influenced by genes, environment and brain structure development. In this study, the MIND (Morphometric Inverse Divergence) network was employed to explore the relationship between morphological similarity and specific transcriptional expression patterns in EOS patients. This study involved a cohort of 187 participants aged between 7 and 17 years, consisting of 97 EOS patients and 90 healthy controls (HC). Multiple morphological features were used to construct the MIND network for all participants. Furthermore, we explored the associations between MIND network and brain-wide gene expression in EOS patients through partial least squares (PLS) regression, shared genetic predispositions with other psychiatric disorders, functional enrichment of PLS weighted genes, as well as transcriptional signature assessment of cell types, cortical layers, and developmental stages. The MIND showed similarity differences in the orbitofrontal cortex, pericalcarine cortex, lingual gyrus, and multiple networks in EOS patients compared to HC. Moreover, our exploration revealed a significant overlap of PLS2 weighted genes linking to EOS-related MIND differences and the dysregulated genes reported in other psychiatric diseases. Interestingly, genes correlated with MIND changes (PLS2-) exhibited a significant enrichment not only in metabolism-related pathways, but also in specific astrocytes, cortical layers (specifically layer I and III), and posterior developmental stages (late infancy to young adulthood stages). However, PLS2+ genes were primarily enriched in synapses signaling-related pathways and early developmental stages (from early-mid fetal to neonatal early infancy) but not in special cell types or layers. These findings provide a novel perspective on the intricate relationship between macroscopic morphometric structural abnormalities and microscopic transcriptional patterns during the onset and progression of EOS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guanqun Yao
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Department of Psychiatry, Yuquan Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100040, China; Institute for Precision Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Jing Luo
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Ting Zou
- School of Life Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 611731, China
| | - Jing Li
- Department of Psychiatry, the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030001, China; School of Mental Health, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030001, China
| | - Shuang Hu
- Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai 200030, China
| | - Langxiong Yang
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Xinrong Li
- Department of Psychiatry, the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030001, China
| | - Yu Tian
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Yuqi Zhang
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Kun Feng
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Department of Psychiatry, Yuquan Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100040, China; Institute for Precision Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
| | - Yong Xu
- Department of Clinical Psychology, The Eighth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, No. 3025, Shennan Middle Road, Futian Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518031, China.
| | - Pozi Liu
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Department of Psychiatry, Yuquan Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100040, China.
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